The overall goal of this training program is to increase underrepresented minority (URM) nurse researchers/scholars in the biomedical and behavioral sciences. Nursing has a severe shortage of qualified URM faculty. Only 10.5% of full-time nursing faculty at senior colleges and universities were URM faculty (AACN. 2007). In contrast, the URM population in the United States was 25% of the total (U.S. Census Bureau, 2004), and the URM nursing doctoral student enrollment was at 11% nationwide (Stanley, Capers, &Berlin, 2007). Twelve Bridges students have been admitted to the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) PhD program in nursing science (one has graduated), and five are currently Bridges students. Building on the solid track record of our past five years, the proposed program will continue to provide URM nursing students the academic preparation/skills to enable them to successfully transfer to and complete a PhD in nursing science. Specific aims are to: #1. Recruit and enroll six URM master's degree nursing students in the UIC Bridges program each year;#2. Provide course work at UIC for Bridges students preparing for admission and matriculation in the UIC PhD program in nursing;#3. Provide ongoing mentorship and administrative support for the Bridges students who matriculate into the UIC PhD program in nursing;#4. Strengthen the research curricula at partner schools;#5. Strengthen Bridges students'knowledge of global leadership;and #6. Demonstrate institutional change through an increase in URM students who matriculate in PhD study. Six URM master's students (DePaul: four;Purdue: two) will be recruited per year. The UIC CON currently has 87 externally funded grants, 44 of which are federally supported, ranking third in NIH funding for colleges of nursing. Eleven faculty members will serve as Bridges Faculty Sponsors/Collaborators with faculties at partner schools. Students will receive financial support during the first 2 years of full-time study by traineeships, scholarships, or research assistantships with stipends. These Bridges students will help develop a critical mass of URM students in the college, and over time lessen the nursing faculty shortage at the national level. Public Health Relevance Statement: The overall goal of this training program is to increase underrepresented minority (URM) nurse researchers/scholars in the biomedical and behavioral sciences. Building on the solid track record of our past five years, the proposed program will continue to provide URM nursing students the academic preparation/skills to enable them to successfully transfer to and complete a PhD in nursing science. Eleven faculty members will serve as Bridges Faculty Sponsors/Collaborators with faculties at the partner schools. Students will receive financial support during the first 2 years of full-time study by traineeships, scholarships, or research assistantships with stipends. These Bridges students will help develop a critical mass of URM students in the college, and over time lessen the nursing faculty shortage at the national level.